Labour must set its sights on winning back seats it lost at the last election rather than simply holding on to what it has, deputy leadership candidate Hilary Benn has warned.

Speaking to The Birmingham Post, he said the party should aim to win back seats such as Yardley from the Liberal Democrats and halt the advance of Respect in parts of Birmingham.

But he admitted members had been leaving Labour, and the party must fight to win them back.

He said: "I want to champion a straightforward type of politics which listens to people and acts on their concerns.

"I think the party wants a deputy leader who will unite it. I will support Gordon Brown 100 per cent, and also tell him things he needs to hear sometimes."

He added: "We have got to fight every seat, including winning back seats we have lost.

Mr Benn, the International Development Secretary, said he had been buoyed by the support of his father, high-profile left-winger Tony Benn, who also stood for the party's deputy leadership in 1981. He said: "When my father heard I was standing, he turned up at my house with a plastic bag full of old 'Benn for Deputy Leader' badges from his own campaign, and said I might need them."